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Canadiens rookie Tomas Plekanec, who hails from the same town as Jaromir Jagr, is a magnificent skater with a nice scoring


This is shaping up to be one of the best seasons ever for rookies in the National Hockey League. From the highly anticipated debut of the Pittsburgh Penguins' Sidney Crosby to the delayed unveiling of the Washington Capitals' Alexander Ovechkin, the No. 1 draft picks of the past two years have dominated the news at season's start.

But they're not the only hot prospects entering the NHL this season. The Philadelphia Flyers have a pair of Calder Trophy candidates in Mike Richards and Jeff Carter. The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim have last season's leading scorer in the Ontario Hockey League in Corey Perry. Buffalo Sabres forward Tomas Vanek displays a veteran's poise, while the Columbus Blue Jackets' Gilbert Brule joined Crosby as the only other member of the 2005 Entry Draft class to start the season in the NHL.

Another rookie scouts think will do very well is Montreal Canadiens left wing Tomas Plekanec, 22, a native of Jaromir Jagr's hometown of Kladno, Czech Republic. The 5-foot-10, 200-pounder is an excellent skater with a nice scoring touch. He came up through the Kladno system, even staying there the year after he was drafted, splitting the season between juniors and the Czech Elite League.

Plekanec (pronounced Plek-uh-nets) came over to North America three years ago and put up 19 goals and 27 assists in 77 games for AHL Hamilton. He had 23 goals and 43 assists the next season and 29 goals and 35 assists in 80 AHL games last season. Not bad for the Canadiens' fourth pick, 71st overall, in the 2001 draft.

In 2004-05, Plekanec was selected to the AHL All-Star Game and put on quite a show. After winning the fastest skater contest, Plekanec led the PlanetUSA AHL All Stars to a 5-4 victory with a second-period goal and another in the shootout. His victory in the skating contest was the difference in PlanetUSA's skills-competition victory.

In what many people believe was the strongest AHL season ever, Plekanec was the MVP of its All-Star Game. Quite an accomplishment, but one the rookie recently downplayed in the dressing room full of Canadiens' veterans.

"I was happy about it," he admitted. "The All-Star Game doesn't determine the best player. We just played for fun. I just scored one goal and one in the shootout. There was nothing important about it, but it was fun."

Actually, the All-Star Game held an important surprise for him. Obviously, his skating is excellent. He was asked when he began to put such an emphasis on his footwork. Credit him for giving an honest answer.

"Until that fastest-skater competition, I didn't know I was a fast skater," Plekanec said. "I didn't used to be and I didn't think I had improved that much. In fact, I was still thinking I wasn't a very good skater and then I won. Since then, everyone says I'm a good skater so I just agree with them. I'm a fast skater!"

Claude Julien was coaching Hamilton when Plekanec arrived there, but moved up to the Canadiens midway through the season and was replaced by Doug Jarvis. Now Jarvis is assisting Julien with the Canadiens. Plekanec said that gives him a great comfort level because both coaches helped him develop and know his capabilities.

"Coach Julien knows me from Hamilton. He coached me for a half-season before he got this job," Plekanec said. "He saw me a lot last year during the NHL lockout. He knows what I can do. I just have to keep earning the opportunity. Coach Jarvis coached me the last couple of years in Hamilton and used me in every situation. He gave me a lot of ice time and I killed penalties and played on the power play.

"He has a lot to teach a young player and you listen because he won Stanley Cups as a player here in Montreal and as an assistant coach in Dallas. It was great for me that he coached me the last couple of years in Hamilton and I'm glad he's here to help me in Montreal. We do a lot of work after practice and that has really helped me."

Plekanec said there was no "sit-down" conversation about expectations with Julien, but a lot of intermittent inquiries that lead to hockey chats.

"Once in awhile, he comes to me and asks how I'm doing, am I comfortable, and then we start talking about how I've been doing and what I could do better. Those talks are very helpful," Plekanec said.

Fellow Czech forward Jan Bulis is impressed with the rookie's poise and maturity.

"Tomas put up a good battle in training camp and he made the team. I think he has a good chance to have a good season," Bulis said. "He just has to work hard and keep a positive attitude, which he is doing. He has good speed and good hands. He sees the ice well."

Plekanec has been playing on an energy line with Steve Begin and Chris Higgins, the Canadiens' first pick, 14th overall in 2002. He's averaging 11 minutes a game and maintaining a plus figure on the plus-minus scale.

"We're young. Steve's still young and Chris is young," Plekanec said. "We have a lot of energy. I think all of the guys that we drafted in 2002 and 2003 are good skaters. So, we are young and fast and have a lot of energy. Hopefully, we'll keep up this skating."

Plekanec has pushed back all thoughts of the Calder Memorial Trophy, focusing instead on more modest goals.

"I don't think about it right now. I'm just want to play for Montreal, get my ice time, play a good game for my team and spend the whole season in the NHL," he said. "I want to establish myself as an NHL player for the next few years. I honestly haven't thought about rookie of the year at all."


Several in the Canadiens organization are impressed with Plekanec's poise and maturity.